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Make your qualifications stand out on career sites

10/25/2018

For just about any job seeker, one of the biggest parts of looking for a new position is making it easy for recruiters to find out about them. For that reason, being extremely easy to spot on sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and, of course, LinkedIn is vital for any professional. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to stand out as an expert in one's field on any or all of these sites, and it won't take that much work to maximize their efficacy.

Perhaps the most important step to making a profile leap off the screen for potentially interested hiring managers is using the right kind of picture, according to The Muse. After all, if someone is scrolling past dozens of potential candidates on any social media site, having a picture that presents the job seeker as serious and professional but in a way that is perhaps a bit different from the typical corporate headshot could be the eye-catching change needed to land more interviews.

Along similar lines, it's also wise for candidates to make sure they're updating their cover photos to highlight some important aspect of their qualifications - and that might include specially making a customized one that stresses some of them, the report said. Furthermore, taking steps to liven up their summary of qualifications at the top of a profile and adding a custom URL will also help candidates stand out from the crowd.

A closer lookWhen job seekers are revamping their profiles to make them more professional, they should also pay careful attention to everything they've previously listed, according to Forbes. While they may have plenty of good information about themselves, it's also likely that this data can be livened up, made more consistent and carefully checked for typos, grammatical errors and the like. Even one misstep on this front can derail a hiring manager's interest, so it's vital to get it exactly right.

Similarly, it's also possible for candidates to simply be too verbose in describing their qualifications, the report said. Simply put, they don't need to - and probably shouldn't - put down every detail that makes them qualified for a job in their chosen profession. Just the highlights, or some of the most recent information, will probably be enough to garner interest for truly impressive candidates.

Show off the networkIn addition, on LinkedIn specifically, it's wise for job seekers to make sure they're connecting with as many people they know in the field as possible, according to Top Resume. It's unwise for job seekers to connect with people they don't actually know - it can come across as disingenuous to send connection requests to industry leaders they've never met.

Likewise, candidates can also ask friends and colleagues in their field to "recommend" them as experts in certain aspects of their work, the report said. That, too, can stand out as an extreme positive for recruiters.

With all this in mind, it's important to remember hiring managers are often just skimming profiles and spending little more than a few seconds with each. Avoiding word salad, lots of lines of information and simply streamlining every aspect of a profile is always a good idea.